Lincoln City vs Portsmouth; Sky Bet Championship
Lincoln City vs Portsmouth. Sky Bet Championship.
LNER Stadium.
Lincoln City 1
- R Hackett-Fairchild (32nd minute pen)
Portsmouth 3
- R Kavuma-McQueen (7th minute)
- A Segecic (16th minute)
- E Adams (69th minute)
Lincoln City 1-3 Portsmouth: First Imps home game in second tier since 1961 ends in defeat
Report and free match highlights from the Sky Bet Championship match between Lincoln City and Portsmouth at ProAmpac Stadium on Saturday; Ryan Kavuma-McQueen, Adrian Segecic and Ebou Adams secure Pompey a first win of the season.
Saturday 22 August 2026 14:40, UK
Portsmouth claimed their first win of the Championship season with a comprehensive 3-1 success at Lincoln.
Pompey, who had lost their first two games of the campaign by the same scoreline, found themselves under the cosh early on, but a seventh-minute goal from Ryan Kavuma-McQueen put them in the driving seat.
Adrian Segecic doubled the lead nine minutes later before Reeco Hackett pulled one back from the spot for the Imps just past the half-hour mark.
Substitute Ebrima Adams then made the game safe with a superb strike after 69 minutes to leave Lincoln still searching for their first win back in the second tier for more than 60 years.
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The Imps started well and were awarded a free-kick just outside the box inside two minutes, with Adam Reach's effort tipped over by Portsmouth goalkeeper Nicolas Schmid.
After Ivan Varfolomeev's initial corner was cleared behind, his second set-piece delivery was met by skipper Tendayi Darikwa, whose first-time effort was deflected away for another corner.
Freddie Draper then put Ben House through on goal, but the City frontman's shot lacked power and Schmid was able to save comfortably.
Portsmouth hit Lincoln with a seventh-minute sucker-punch, scoring with their very first attack.
The ball found Kavuma-McQueen on the left side of the City box and he arrowed a low effort straight into the bottom corner.
Colby Bishop's looping header was gathered by Imps keeper George Wickens before Segecic doubled Pompey's lead after 16 minutes.
The Australian schemer smacked a bullet of a free-kick past Wickens with his left foot from the edge of the box to make it 2-0.
Hackett reduced the arrears from the penalty spot after 32 minutes after Reach's 20-yard effort was adjudged to have been handled by Zak Swanson as he attempted to block the shot.
Hackett and Varfolomeev both dragged efforts wide before Wickens had to be alert at the other end to push a Bishop strike out for a corner.
Darikwa was forced off with a knee injury 10 minutes into the second half, which meant a home debut for City's record signing Andrei Coubis.
Wickens blocked Bishop's shot in the first meaningful attack of the second period around the hour mark as both sides struggled to carve out opportunities as the sun shone brightly at the ProAmpac Stadium.
It took one of the Pompey subs to light the match up when Adams was given far too much space in the middle of the pitch and he strode forward and unleashed a stunning 25-yard strike past Wickens after 69 minutes.
Segecic nearly made it four five minutes from time, but his low shot was saved by Wickens.
The managers
Lincoln's:
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Portsmouth's John Mousinho:
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